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Mom explains the common Boomer parenting style that still affects many adults today

Many are relieved to finally have a term for this experience.

Photo by Monstera Production

“What they want is dishonest harmony rather than honest conflict.”

There are certainly many things the Boomer parents generally did right when raising their kids. Teaching them the importance of manners and respect. That actions do, in fact, have consequences. That a little manners go a long way…all of these things are truly good values to instill in kids.

But—and we are speaking in broad strokes here—being able to openly discuss difficult feelings was not one of the skills passed down by this generation. And many Gen X and millennial kids can sadly attest to this. This is why the term “dishonest harmony” is giving many folks of this age group some relief. They finally have a term to describe the lack of emotional validation they needed throughout childhood for the sake of saving face.

In a video posted to TikTok, a woman named Angela Baker begins by saying, “Fellow Gen X and millennials, let's talk about our parents and their need for dishonest harmony.”

Barker, who thankfully did not experience this phenomenon growing up, but says her husband “certainly” did, shared that when she’s tried to discuss this topic, the typical response she’d get from Boomers would be to “Stop talking about it. We don't need to hear about it. Move on. Be quiet.”

And it’s this attitude that’s at the core of dishonest harmony.

“What that’s showing is their lack of ability to handle the distress that they feel when we talk openly about uncomfortable things,” she says. “What they want is dishonest harmony rather than honest conflict.”


@parkrosepermaculture Replying to @Joe Namath #boomerparents #toxicparent #harmony #genx #millennial #badparenting #conflict #nocontact ♬ original sound - Parkrose Permaculture


“Keep quiet about these hard issues. Suppress your pain, suppress your trauma. Definitely don't talk openly about it so that you can learn to heal and break the cycle,” she continues. “What matters most is that we have the appearance of harmony, even if there's nothing harmonious under the surface.”

Barker concludes by theorizing that it was this need to promote a certain facade that created most of the toxic parenting choices of that time period.

“The desire of boomer parents to have this perception that everything was sweet and hunky dory, rather than prioritizing the needs of their kids, is what drove a lot of the toxic parenting we experienced.”

Barker’s video made others feel so seen, as clearly indicated by the comments.

“How did I not hear about dishonest harmony until now? This describes my family dynamic to a T. And if you disrespect that illusion, you are automatically labeled as the problem. It’s frustrating,” one person wrote.

“THANK YOU SO MUCH! I'm a 49 yo biker sitting in my bedroom crying right now. You just put a name to my darkness!” added another

Many shared how they were refusing to repeat the cycle.

One wrote, “This is EXACTLY my family dynamic. I’m the problem because I won’t remain quiet. Not anymore. Not again.”

“I love when my kids tell me what I did wrong. It gives me a chance to acknowledge and apologize. Everyone wants to be heard,” said another.

Of course, no parenting style is perfect. And all parents are working with the current ideals of the time, their own inner programming and their inherent need to course correct child raising problems of the previous generation. Gen Alpha parents will probably cringe at certain parenting styles currently considered in vogue. It’s all part of the process.

But hopefully one thing we have learned as a collective is that true change happens when we summon the courage to have difficult conversations.


This article originally appeared last year.

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Need to have a tough talk with your kid? Doctor suggests to have it in your car.

A great piece of advice for those "awkward but important" talks every parent must have.

@beachgem10/TikTok

Dr. Meghan Martin explains why tough conversations are best kept for the car.

As much as modern parents prioritize open, honest communication with their kids, there are still some talks that will always feel challenging to have.

But according to Dr. Meghan Martin, a pediatric emergency room physician and mom of four with a hefty social media following, making those awkward conversations just a little smoother all comes down to location, location, location.

“Those awkward, but really important conversations that you need to have with your kids The birds and the bees, protection, drugs, all of that stuff: have those conversations in the car,” “ she says in a clip posted to her TikTok.

Martin declared that this “brilliant” insight given to her by best friend, handle @teawiththeteach, is the “best piece of parenting advice” she’s ever received.

Here’s why.

“You have your hands on the wheel, you are looking straight ahead, you do not have to be making eye contact with anyone talking about the birds and the bees and the parts and the drugs or whatever that conversation is about that day. You also have a captive audience that is literally seat belted in behind you,” she explained.

Not having to maintain intense eye contact makes the entire conversation less embarrassing and vulnerable for everyone involved. And where there’s less embarrassment, there’s more room for things to actually be heard.

Plus, unlike having a talk at home, which already has serious undertones, cars are instantly more casual, making things less of a “big deal,” Martin noted. Just think, wouldn't it be nice to instantly throw on an upbeat playlist after having one of these chats…rather than sitting in awkward silence?

Martin herself has tried this approach with her two older kids, and said the car has now become a “safe place” for things to be talked about. They even bring up their own questions to discuss.


@beachgem10 Replying to @user2271606969875 The best piece parenting advice was from @teawiththeteach and she said to have uncomfortable conversations with kids in the car #parenting #advice #thebirdsandthebees #conversation ♬ original sound - Beachgem10

“I’m starting to have these conversations with my younger kids,” she concluded, “and I want to emphasize how important it is to talk about these issues early so that when you get to that older teen/pre-teen time that it’s not the first time they’re hearing about it.”

Martin isn’t the only one to have tried car talk either. Many folks in the comments shared how they have successfully brought up difficult subjects on car trips.

“Yes, my oldest is 26 and I still have big conversations with him in the car. At that age I wait until we’re on the interstate so he can’t jump out,” one person wrote.

“I love the car for tough conversations even with my spouse,” added another.

A few recalled having their own tough car conversations as kids.

“My mom ALWAYS did this,”one viewer said, adding “I still get anxiety in the car with her wondering what she is going to bring up and I have my own family now. ... I am glad she did and that she cared enough to have those conversations.”

Another parent even shared how they added in one other element to make for smoother discussions, writing ““I did this. Add an ice cream cone to connect something enjoyable for the brain to connect to. My boys would ask for ice cream drives when they had something serious they wanted to discuss.”

Other resources have pondered other factors that make conversations seem to flow easier in a car, like the close proximity, limited distractions, and the changing scenery which helps create the sense that we’re not stuck with a problem. An article posted in Symptoms of Living also surmises that having a shared destination and facing the same direction also play a big part.

Having big talks with kids might be difficult, but it’s all an integral part of being a parent. Hopefully this tidbit can make things easier for everyone involved.

Just remember to have that upbeat playlist at the ready!

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Family

Two girl dads debate on which public bathroom they should take their daughters into

These dads disagreed on whether the women's of men's bathroom was best. So they asked TikTok to weigh in.

@djdrewski/TikTok

It’s a dilemma every girl dad must eventually face—choosing whether to take their daughters into the women’s bathroom, or the men’s. Sure, some places (more and more these days) have all-gender or family bathrooms with changing stations, but generally speaking those are far and few between.

Recently, DJ Drewski found himself and his brother—a fellow girl dad—facing this common predicament, and each father had a different opinion on which bathroom was the correct choice. So, Drewski thought he might settle the debate on TikTok.

“So two girl dads in Disney, we're in Disney World right now,” Drewski begins. “As a girl dad, I bring my daughter into the men's room, of course, into a stall in that bathroom. My brother brings his daughter into the female restroom. The women's restroom. We don't know which is the right way to do it or how women feel.”

@djdrewski As a “Girl Dad” which restroom are you supoose to use with your toddler DAUGHTER in public places??? #question #girldad #toddlersoftiktok #disney ♬ original sound - DJ Drewski

Where Drewski “doesn’t feel comfortable’ going into the women’s restroom, his brother argued that the women’s room is cleaner, and therefore better suited for his daughter. The second opinion matched the rationale of a girl dad Upworthy covered back in 2021, who lamented that “Men's bathrooms are DISGUSTING. They smell like pee and nothing is set up for a woman or a person with a child.”

Other moms seemed to share a preference for dad’s entering the women restroom, so long as they announce they’re coming in.

“Women’s rest room just yell girl dad coming in,” one person commented

Another said, “Ladies will accept you, just announce yourself. If any ladies give you trouble, they obviously don't have kids. Ignore them.”

However, folks weren’t vehemently opposed to taking daughter’s into the men’s room.

“As a Girl Dad... men's room straight to a stall... never have I ever had any issues .. lol” one viewer quipped.

Another shared, “My dad used to bring me to the guys bathroom and have me close my eyes until we got into the stall! Never was a problem to me or my mom ! Whatever you prefer I think.”

And of course, another viewer added that it sure would be nice to “normalize” changing tables in men’s rooms as well.

It’s clear that each of these dads are trying to do what’s best for their daughters, and are willing to have open conversations about how to best go about it. That’s perhaps the biggest and best takeaway of all here, regardless of which bathroom they choose. Just wash those hands!

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Mom shares why having her first kid after 30 was the best decision she could have made

"I have zero FOMO."

Representative image from Canva

Goes to show that it's often best to work on your own timeline.

With all the miraculous blessings that a baby brings, the life you had before it came into the world is gone forever. No more spontaneous outings, putting your own preferences first, being reckless and carefree. Of course these sacrifices are well worth it, most parents would agree. But that doesn’t mean they don’t feel some grief over their former selves.

And it’s this fear of missing out, aka FOMO, that has one mom thanking her lucky stars that she didn’t have her first child until the ripe old age of 33.

Style content creator and new mom Kristie shared in a TikTok video how having a childfree 20s helped her going into her pregnancy at 33 with zero worries of missing out.

“Becoming a first-time mom at 33, 10 out of 10, hear me out,” she said in the clip, acknowledging that pregnancies later in life aren’t without potential risks.

But, at least in her experience, having “15 years to be selfish” allowed her the opportunity to really become ready to be a mom on an emotional, mental and financial level.

So now that she is pregnant, she feels like she has “been there, done that” with the pre-mom activities, and can completely appreciate the new chapter of her life.

“This has been such an amazing time. I haven't done a lot in the past three and a half months. I'm just kind of soaked in the time with my daughter. Not watching everybody's Instagram stories, traveling or going out to dinner or going out on the weekends. And I'm not like, ‘I wish I was doing that.’ I'm like, ‘I've already done that. I've already done that a lot.’”

Nowadays, she’s perfectly content to “just enjoy the little things,” like the cup of coffee she’s about to have as her daughter takes a nap.

@astylechild

but also somehow simultaneously feeling like a teen mom

♬ original sound - Kristie

Kristie’s video clearly struck a chord with other moms who had their first kids later in life, and had similar positive experiences.

“34 with a 2 month old! PhD, JD done and more secure and no fomo! We lived and ate well!” one person wrote.

“100%. Had my first baby at 33 and I cannot imagine having one in my 20’s!! I’m glad I had my selfish time pre baby ❤️” another added.

Others simply agreed that just because our biology tends to favor getting pregnant in our 20s and even younger, life doesn’t often accommodate for that kind of timeline.

“I just turned 30 and the thought of having children anytime soon is WILD to me,” one person wrote.

As the Mayo Clinic explains, “The biological clock is a fact of life. But there's nothing magical about age 35. It's simply an age at which risks become more discussion worthy.” And that’s a great way of framing it. Sure, there are things to be aware of, like fertility issues, health risks, and potential complications—but that doesn't mean it’s unwise to hold off on starting a family until you’re fully ready.

Frankly, the societal pressure to have a baby before 30 might be due in part to the medical risks, but let’s be honest: it’s also another way women are taught to feel "past their prime" after the first quarter of their entire life. Luckily, women like Kristie sharing their stories helps break through that kind of stigma.

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